A Traitor in the Midst
by Hannurdock
Summary: Face has betrayed the team. But has he done it because he was forced to?


  
Title: A Traitor in the Midst  
  
Author: Hannurdock / Georgina Ann Price  
  
Summary: The team get captured on a mission because one of them betrays the others.  
  
Warnings: Mental angst only and a little torture and pain.  
  
  
  
****  
  
  
Hannibal sat in the bamboo cage, a trickle of blood tickling his forehead as it ran down his cheek. He put his hand up shakily, and wiped away the trickle quickly and sharply, wincing at the slight pain it caused.  
  
Hannibal stared across to the two other bamboo cages where BA and Murdock lay unconscious, bruised and beaten. He grimly let his thoughts wander back to the circumstances that had led to the team's capture.   
  
****  
  
(Hannibal's Flashback Number 1)  
  
Hannibal called the retreat, but Face was lagging. Hannibal reached out to pull Peck forward, when a plastic bag had been put over his head and he was punched severly in the stomach. As he doubled over in pain and fell to the ground, he was dimly aware of the sounds of Murdock and BA being captured. Cursing, he felt the plastic bag suddenly removed. The horrific sight he'd never forget. Face looking down at him gloating, his hand draped over Hannibals attackers shoulder - a grin of victory plastered all over his face.  
  
"Well done, Lieutenant" One of the attackers, obviously the leader, had said. Hannibal looked at Face, his eyes pleading one word - Why?  
  
****  
  
Hannibal closed his eyes. His heart was broken. He had had no idea why Peck would have betrayed the team. They were all so close. He felt tears suddenly, and pushed them away, concentrating instead on a possible way to escape.   
  
"Murdock?" Hannibal whispered, over to Murdock's bamboo cage. Murdock opened his eyes, but was in no mood for talking at all. The misery of having been betrayed by his best friend had broken his resolve, shattered his strength.  
  
"We need to get out of here. Are you and BA ready to leave?" Hannibal asked.  
  
"Without Face?" Murdock said suddenly, sitting up. He looked at Hannibal with astonished eyes.   
  
"Without Face" Hannibal said, nodding to make it clear to Murdock. Murdock gasped slightly, and he felt very alone.  
  
"Face wouldn't betray us Colonel. He never would betray us" Murdock argued.  
  
Hannibal sighed deeply. "Captain, we all have to face facts. Face isn't going to be coming with us, he's joined the other side".  
  
"But why?" Murdock asked, insistently. He needed answers, he was losing his mind with this terrible betrayal, by his best friend of all people.  
  
Hannibal shook his head, and shrugged his shoulders, trying not to let Murdock see how torn he was "Maybe he sympathised with their cause. Its happened before".  
  
Murdock shook his head, refusing to believe it. "You know I can't accept that".  
  
****  
  
(Hannibal's Flashback Number 2)  
  
Hannibal opened his eyes, the light hurt his them immensely. Face was standing nearby, talking with one of the guards. Hannibal felt stung as he heard them laugh together.  
  
Then a whip cracked over his stomach, and Hannibal cried out briefly as the scorching pain travelled up and down his body. The whip descended again.  
  
"What's wrong Colonel. Painful?" Face asked, smirking.  
  
"Why, Face?" Hannibal asked, before the darkness descended.  
  
Face looked terribly sad for a moment "You know why. You always have ....."  
  
****  
  
Hannibal fiddled with the lock on his cage. His fingers struggled with it, but it would not open. He leaned back quickly as Face emerged, hurrying by with a set of keys.  
  
"What's up? Need some torture for your Saturday afternoon entertainment" Hannibal asked wryly.  
  
"There's no time" Face said, opening the door to Hannibal's cage.   
  
Seeing an opening, Hannibal flew at Peck, dislodging the keys from his grasp. Startled, Face fell to the ground as Hannibal punched him in the stomach. Face rolled himself into a ball as Hannibal grabbed the keys and opened the other cages, releasing BA and Murdock from their confines.  
  
"You bastard, how could you do this to us?" Murdock shouted, running up to Face and trying to turn him over. BA flexed his muscles and walked threateningly towards the young Lieutenant, doubled up on the ground.  
  
Face stayed, rolled in a ball, gasping for breath. Murdock moved away, feeling suddenly guilty and the three men waited. Waited for an answer, which never came.  
  
Feeling anger more strongly than he had ever before felt in his life, Hannibal knelt before the Lieutenant, forcing him to unravel, pulling his shirt up with the effort. What he saw made him take his hands off Face and reel backwards in shock. "Dear God".  
  
Face's chest was covered in serious welts and bruises which had begun to get infected. Hannibal shuddered as he realised the force of the blow he had delivered to Peck's stomach. Leaning forwards, he pulled the injured Lieutenant into his arms, lifting him gently.  
  
"Something is going on here" Hannibal said to the others. "Something tells me Face has been the unwilling party to something we don't know about. I think, if we leave him here, we'll never see him again".  
  
BA and Murdock nodded, their enthusiasm boosted by the fact Face may not have betrayed them deliberately, but was forced to do so.  
  
****  
  
(Hannibal's Flashback Number 3)  
  
Hannibals eyes weakly opened in the bamboo cage. He heard laughing, and weakly recognised Face walking away from him.  
  
He looked across from Face to see Murdock and BA in two other cages. BA was unconscious and Murdock was on the way. Murdock reached out with his hand weakly before he passed out from lack of blood and weakness. "Face ......"  
  
Hannibal had never felt more helpless than at that moment.  
  
Hannibal sat in the bamboo cage, a trickle of blood tickling his forehead as it ran down his cheek. He put his hand up shakily, and wiped away the trickle quickly and sharply, wincing at the slight pain it caused.  
  
****  
  
The van was parked away from the wood, out of sight of the fanatical military group they had been on a mission to stop. Hannibal carried Face closely, and BAand Murdock jumped quickly into the van, Hannibal got into the back with Murdock and together they applied anticeptic to Face's bruised and torn stomach. BA drove, keeping a watchful eye on the road, not saying a word.  
  
****  
  
Face felt himself regaining consciousness, the sounds of voices bringing him out of the darkness. His vision began to clear and he looked ashamed at the team.  
  
"I have to go back" he said weakly.  
  
"No way man!" BA spoke from the front of the van. "You aint going back!".  
  
"You don't understand" Face said, tears welling in his eyes. "I HAVE to go back".  
  
"What have they got on you, kid?" Hannibal asked.   
  
Face looked away for a moment, and then back towards the team fearfully. "My son".  
  
****  
  
The van screeched to a stop. BA looked at Face, not comprehending fully what he had been told "Your son?".  
  
Face nodded. "I couldn't let him die. They promised he'd be alright if I captured you all. I felt so guilty, but when I saw you suffering that much, I couldn't go through with it. I planned to go back and get my son before they knew anything had happened". He looked miserably at Hannibal "Then you gut punched me".  
  
Hannibal put his head in his hands groaning. He couldn't face the Lieutenant. "BA, turn around - we're going back".  
  
****  
  
Five year old, David Peck sat before the men, looking up unafraid. His mother was tied to the wall, and was pleading with the men not to harm him. Her name was Rhonda, Face's main lover over the years, and her eyes were red with tears.  
  
"Please .... don't ....." Rhonda said, crying as she saw what they were going to do to her baby.  
  
"Kill him" The leader said, and David watched wide-eyed as the shiny gun was put to his head.  
  
****  
  
The van came to a halt before the main building, where most of the meetings for the extremist group were held.   
  
"Face, stay inside .... just in case" Hannibal ordered.  
  
"What are we looking for, Colonel?" Murdock asked.  
  
"If you see a five year old kid, yell" Hannibal explained, loading his weapon.  
  
The team silently split up, checking rooms throughout the building. Hannibal was the first to find the room where David was being held. The leader looked up in surprise as the door opened. Hannibal took only a second to register the entire scene, and sensing the immediate danger to the child fired instantly on instinct.  
  
Murdock and BA were only seconds away, and entered the room hastily. Murdock ran over to Rhonda, freeing her from her bonds, and she ran up to David and held him close.  
  
"Ahh, a happy family" Hannibal said.  
  
"Minus one very lucky dad" Murdock commented, smiling at David, who smiled back.  
  
****  
  
Face walked along with his arm around Rhonda who was carrying David tightly to her chest.  
  
"I should have told them to start with, but I was afraid they'd kill David" Face explained.  
  
Rhonda shook her head. "You did what you had to do. For David's sake - I'm sure they understood".  
  
Face smiled sadly. "I will never be able to forgive myself for what I almost did back there, the team could have been killed".  
  
Rhonda turned to Face. "Look at me Tempelton. They understood. Trust me, they hold no blame on you".  
  
Face sighed deeply. "I hope so" then perking up slightly "How about we go to the zoo together? David hasn't been to the zoo yet".  
  
Rhonda nodded, tears in her eyes. "I was waiting until we could go together".  
  
Face grinned, and opened the door to the vette, and Rhonda got inside with David. As they drove off, three shadowy figure emerged from behind a tree.  
  
"Looks like he's Okay" BA said, turning to Hannibal.  
  
"Yeah, I just wanted to make sure. Once the leader of that group was killed, they all dispersed. I wanted to make sure that none of them wanted revenge on Face, that's all". Hannibal confirmed, watching the corvette disappear behind a corner and vanish from sight.  
  
"I'm so glad he didn't betray us" Murdock said grinning. "Didn't ever think he would, without a VERY GOOD cause!".  
  
Hannibal nodded, grinning. "Well, we'll keep an eye on them for a while". Putting his arms around BA and Murdock's shoulders he grinned and said "How about a little trip to the zoo?".  
  
  
THE END.  



End file.
